Houses

Further down the page, the process of establishing the house system is detailed (as recorded in "Harris Academy, the First 100 years"). However, a former pupil who was involved in the process has been able to offer a more detailed insight.

The Origins of the House System at Harris Academy

Tradition is the thread that binds the fabric of our society. We seldom question the events that have led to the origins of traditions. Many events are celebrated which become part of our traditions. The recognition of Christ’s birth has Christmas traditions which are celebrated throughout the Christian world. The tradition of recognizing the birth of Robert Burns, on the 25^th of January, with Burns suppers is proudly done throughout Scotland and internationally. The Immortal Memory is liberally toasted and the haggis is sliced and distributed with much eloquence. We did not realize in 1950 that we would be establishing a tradition at the Harris Academy when we introduced the House system as it exists today. It has become a powerful part of the fabric of the school.

There had been a House system at the Harris Academy prior to the Second World War which had been discontinued. The Rector at the time, Mr. Peterkin, chose not to resurrect it. The arrival of the new Rector, Mr. Hope, in 1950 presented an opportunity to start afresh. Morag Reid and I were elected school captains and Mr. Hope and Miss Duncan (the Lady Superintendent) were most amenable and proactive in helping to establish the House system as we know it today. Our sixth year comprised of many very bright and active people and we all pulled together in making sure that the House system had a strong foundation and ran smoothly.

We had many meetings in the library and prefect's room to decide the best form for this new venture. Mr. Hope and Miss Duncan enlisted the help of the staff. Many members of the staff had been educated in schools which had House systems and the transition from no House system to one in full operation was a major education for everyone. The logistics were mind-boggling. Other schools in Dundee had similar systems and we wished to ensure that the House system that we introduced, to the Harris, would be the best in the city.

The concept, as originally mooted by our sixth year, was to promote greater competition in sport and to provide opportunities, for everyone, who had the inclination, to become a member of a team fielded by their House. The system was expanded, on the advice of the staff, to include scholastic achievement and this was embraced by everyone. Over the years the system has been modified to provide competition which culminates in the winning house being unveiled at prize giving. The final result is usually kept a closely guarded secret.

We had to choose names for the Houses. The discussions by the prefects were distilled into choosing names which were included in Shakespeare's Macbeth -- Birnam, Forres and Cawdor. These were readily accepted but we had difficulty in finding a fourth name. Glamis was an obvious choice but Morgan Academy, the rival Academy across the city, had Glamis as the name of one of their Houses and it was thought appropriate to choose another name. The discussions went around in circles and finally the name Kinloch was proposed. The historical significance of the name Kinloch was of a political nature. Mr. Kinloch had been one of the city of Dundee's first members of Parliament. The name Kinloch is well-known around the city and it had two syllables. The concept was to have House names which were fairly short. They would be used when exhorting players in the House teams to greater heights. It was obvious that Dunsinane did not fit this requirement.

The decision, then, was made to name the Houses, - Birnam, Forres, Cawdor and Kinloch. The daunting task of assigning the pupils to individual Houses now had to be undertaken. Copies of the school registers were obtained and coloured pencils were used to give each pupil the appropriate color to correspond with the house to which they had been assigned. Birnam was red, Forres - green, Cawdor - yellow and Kinloch was blue. These colours have now become part of the tradition of the school. Every effort was made to keep families together in the same House. There was a brief period of transition to ensure that nothing had been overlooked.

House officials who were appointed in that important first year.

1950-51

HOUSE CAPTAINS AND (VICE CAPTAINS)

Birnam

Heather Mitchell, David Keay, (Violet Ross, Stewart Clark )

Cawdor

Anne Black, Adam Wilkie, (Margaret Stephen, Blair Grubb)

Forres

Irene Brown, David Richardson, (Moira Conacher, William Anderson)

Kinloch

Aileen Brown, John Curt, (Beatrice Weddell, James Simpson)

The House Captains and vice Captains all worked very hard to ensure the success of the implementation of the House system. When they left school, becoming Former Pupils, they were all very successful in their chosen professions. I am very proud to have been associated with all of them. They were true leaders. The tradition that was started then has become woven into a strong fabric. The Harris Academy is well-recognized as a leading educational establishment in Great Britain. The house system continues to play a major role in the development of healthy competition and pupils and Former Pupils alike are the beneficiaries.

David Philip, Boys School Captain 1950 –1951

The following is extracted from "Harris Academy, the First 100 years", written by Dr G.D. Brindle in 1985.

The most obvious change introduced by Mr Hope was the introduction of the House system which tried to overcome the problems which inevitably beset a large school. Amongst 1,400 pupils of varied abilities and interests it is all too easy for a school to seem a cold and anonymous place, where exams are the sole priority and only the most able academic pupils seem to be considered important. In common with his predecessors, Mr Hope was determined to ensure that such a sterile atmosphere did not characterise the Harris. A vital ingredient in ensuring that all pupils maintained a sense of identity and a pride in the school was to be played by the house system

First in mathematics or first in the "100 Yards under-16" - both achievements have their value. The house system should promote keenness and community sense, give activities point and purpose, foster esprit de corps and pride in the school.

Such noble-sounding sentiments can serve to disguise the real and practical benefits which the house system provided. Academic work was not the only criterion by which a pupil could be judged. The many and varied talents of the pupils could now be recognised in the form of house points, regardless of whether their abilities were displayed in the classroom, on the sports field or in some form of community service. Above all, pupils now belonged, not to a massive and impersonal institution, but to a smaller group where their efforts could receive due praise and a sense of personal importance could be maintained.

The task of setting up such a system was far from easy and required many hours of tedious work. For the Prefects, however, there were some benefits to be gained

After many lengthy consultations in the library, the Prefects, now provided with a cast-iron alibi for absenting themselves from classes, set to work to allot the pupils to the four houses, while many an unfortunate teacher had an arduous time trying to keep track of his register, imperiously comandeered by the denizens of the library. No debate in the House of Commons ever exceeded those held in the library in brilliance and wit, while the respective merits of various names for the houses underwent heated discussion. Finally, the Opposition agreed to drop their Molotov tactics, and Birnam, Cawdor, Forres and Kinloch were decided upon. Red, yellow, green and blue were adopted as the house colours, the Rector carefully pointing out in the hall that these had no political significance!

The reasons for choosing these particular house names are now lost in the mists of obscurity. Certainly, the choice for the first three house names seems more than a little influenced by the members of the English Department, although they would no doubt have claimed that the choice of Birnam, Cawdor and Forres was merely evidence of the enthusiasm which they had instilled in the senior pupils for Shakespeare's "Macbeth". Such enthusiasm seems to have been combined with an incomplete knowledge of the work, however, as they failed to complete the obvious set by dubbing the other house either Dunsinane or Glamis. This apparent oversight may be partly explained by the dual role of the English Department. At that time, the teaching of history was also its responsibility and it may have seemed appropriate that the fourth house should have a historical derivation, the Kinlochs having long been associated with Dundee and having provided Dundee's first Member of Parliament in the shape of George Kinloch.

The first year of the inter-house competition excited great enthusiasm amongst the pupils. Points were awarded for a variety of activities and the varying fortunes of each house during the year were keenly watched by staff and pupils alike. Kinloch triumphed in the sports leagues and were ultimately acclaimed champion House in Sport. Cawdor figuratively and literally outdistanced all others on Sports Day, captured four Leng Medals and were strongly fancied to win the splendid trophy presented by the ParentTeachers' Association. Forres swimmers gained for their house a very considerable lead in the gala. On the academic side, however, Birnam's superiority was not to be questioned, while their athletes also gained many useful points. The final outcome was not, in fact, decided until the secondlast day of the school year but was kept a close secret until the prizegiving the following day. Just as today, four pairs of house captains were left on tenterhooks, wondering who would be called to receive the Inter-House Trophy. As always, the announcement was left to the last possible moment before Mr Hope finally ended the suspense: Birnam were the first House Champions.